


Lontain Souvenir

by HariWrites



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M, Identity Reveal, Marichat, Thunder and Lightning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-24
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-09-26 13:11:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,299
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17142371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HariWrites/pseuds/HariWrites
Summary: When a noise on the roof alerts Marinette to a distressed Chat Noir, she invites him in. She doesn’t expect that a stray feather will help him fill in the missing pieces of his mother’s disappearance.





	Lontain Souvenir

**Author's Note:**

> This is my ML Secret Santa gift for Warped-Butterfly. Merry Christmas!! I hope this Marichat tale is to your liking :D

Rain battered against the windows and drummed against the roof hatch. With each flash of lightning, Marinette counted the seconds until the corresponding roll of thunder sounded. It was close. Very close.

When she concentrated hard enough on the Christmas scarf she was knitting, she could filter out the rumbles and the weather became ambient noise. Like this, time could pass for hours and she wouldn't notice.

A sudden bang made her jump. She and Tikki laughed at their nervousness before another noise told them it hadn't been thunder. There was scrabbling on her roof and Marinette’s curiosity took hold and she lifted the hatch just enough to see outside. There, she found Chat Noir, drenched and shivering, hunched behind the wall of her terrace, sheltering himself from the onslaught of icy rain.

“Chat!” She pushed the hatch wide. “Get inside before you freeze to death!”

He willingly complied, scrambling across the wet floor and dropping onto her bed. She draped her blanket over him and ushered him down the ladder to her room.

“Stay here, I’ll get you a towel and some hot chocolate.”

He didn’t speak, his teeth were still chattering.

In the kitchen, Tikki emerged from her hiding place, behind the cookie jar.

“Is everything okay, Marinette?”

She frowned. “I'm not sure. We didn’t have a patrol planned for tonight, and I think he’d have told me by now if there was an akuma. I don’t know why else he’d be here, though.”

“I’ll stay down here while you find out. If you need me, call.”

“Thanks, Tikki.”

She busied herself with the hot chocolate, absentmindedly gnawing on her lip as she did. Finally, she balanced the mugs on a plate of cookies and carefully climbed the stairs. Inside, Chat was still shivering. Marinette abandoned the drinks on the floor by her hatch and returned downstairs to locate a large towel. Her parents were already asleep, her father would be up in a few hours to start the dough and she didn’t want to disturb them so she snuck back to her room and closed the hatch almost silently.

She wrapped the towel around him and rubbed gently on his hair, trying to dry it off. He purred and leaned into her hands. Giggling, she continued, focusing on the spot behind his ears. Chat’s shuddering soon abated and colour returned to his cheeks. He smiled up at her.

“Welcome back,” she said, handing him one of the hot chocolates.

Chat grinned gratefully as he took it, hugging the mug with two hands.

“Mmmm,” he hummed as the molten cocoa warmed his insides.

He leaned back against the chaise and sighed, his shoulders relaxed, he was at ease here. Marinette watched him over the rim of her own cup, wondering if she should ask why he was here. If it was urgent, he’d have spoken up by now, surely?

“Not that I don’t enjoy your visits, kitty, but is everything okay?”

“It is now.”

His smile was wide and genuine. For all that he looked damp and bedraggled, he also seemed at ease. Behind that, though, she saw pain in his eyes. She knew that Chat had a rough home life, he’d alluded to it enough, but they’d never discussed it. They never shared anything too personal for fear of exposing their identities. In spite of that, she couldn’t help but ask.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

He took his time sipping his drink, eyes dancing over the surface, mind working overtime. She thought he’d deflect, change the subject or crack a joke.

He didn’t.

“I think I need to talk about it.”

☂★☂

It was her compassion and concern for him that made him say it. He know how important it was to keep his identity concealed, how a big a risk it would be to reveal details of his real life to someone that was a part of it. He needed this, though. Had to talk to someone, and Marinette would always be his chosen confidante.

“I argued with my father. Again,” he said.

“Okay,” she sat on the other end of the chaise, her face a picture of concentration.

He continued. “I never told you this, but my mother isn’t around and my father took her disappearance hard. He was never a fun dad, but it got worse afterwards. Locked in the house, never-go-out-without-a-bodyguard, worse. Tonight, he found out I’d slipped away from my bodyguard to spend time with my friends.”

“Oh, that’s awful!”

“Yeah,” he shrugged. For him, it was normal. “Well, my father started to lay into my bodyguard for losing me and I stepped in to defend him. Which, evidently, wasn't my place.”

“Oh, Chat. I’m sorry your home life isn’t easy.”

She placed a hand on his leg and he felt warmth emanate from the spot to heat his whole body. With all the bad luck that came from being the holder of the black cat miraculous, he wondered how it was possible he’d defied the odds and met someone as magical as Marinette.

“While we were arguing, he told me to ‘stop being so dramatic’. What he said triggered something… a memory.”

_He was in a yurt, somewhere in China and the rain was lashing down, hammering against the canvas. Adrien was in bed and his parents, separated from him by a thick strip of fabric, were arguing._

_“Stop being so dramatic, Emilie! This is for the greater good.”_

“Can you tell me what you remembered? You don’t have to, but…”

“I want to, princess, but it was a fragment of a remembrance and I don’t understand it.”

Marinette tapped her fingernail on her mug as she considered something. It was a little quirk he loved about her (as a great friend, of course), like the way her tongue poked out when she concentrated on her designs, or how her arms flailed when she was nervous.

“Do you want to stay here tonight? Let him calm down?”

He nodded earnestly. The last thing he wanted to do was face Gabriel’s wrath.

“Yes, please.”

“Let me go grab a comforter and some spare pillows.”

He watched as her head disappeared down the hatch again and smiled. Marinette was kind to everyone and he was glad to be her friend. Around the room, a scattering of photos decorated the walls, including a variety of shots of Adrien. Some were from magazines, others were candids, probably taken by Alya. He chuckled about the time he confronted her about the pictures, he'd flirted a little then and felt a thrill in the pit of his stomach. He was sure she flirted back.

Yes, Marinette was a very good friend.

Raven hair emerged from the hatch, the rest of the girl obscured by bedding. He jumped up to help her. Grabbing an armful of pillows, he carried them to the chaise and Marinette shook out the duvet.

An itch started in the back of the throat which travelled to his nose where it became a tickle.

“Achoo!! Aaa-choo, choo!!”

Through watering eyes Marinette appeared horrified.

“Your allergy! I forgot this is a feather comforter!”

He didn't recall ever telling her as Chat Noir that he was allergic to feathers, but he must have. It was funny, he hadn’t always been allergic, it came on a few years ago for some unknown reason.

“It's… Achoo!... okay. An… Achoo!... easy mistake to make… Achoo!!”

She shook her head. “It's not okay, up the ladder with you. You can sleep with me.”

His throat burned and his nose prickled, yet he still managed to quirk an eyebrow and grin cockily. She rolled her eyes demonstrably.

“You can sleep next to me, kitty.”

“Achoo! I'll take it.”

On the bed, he turned onto his side, facing her and she did the same. Marinette tucked one hand under her pillow and reached out with the other to stroke his nose.

“Feeling less sneezy now?”

“Mostly. There’s still a tickle in there, though.”

He ran his eyes over the face of the beautiful girl in front of him and his sharp eye caught the source of his discomfort. A white feather had broken free from the duvet and embedded itself in her hair. He plucked it out and held it out.

“Oops,” she chuckled. “Let me dispose of that.”

_A white feather fluttered down in front of him and he heard his mother’s voice. “Adrien, you are strong, you are kind, you are worthy.” He looked around for… somebody… but he was alone. His parents had gone out, leaving him with Gorilla. And yet, he could hear her._

“Minou?”

He opened his eyes to concern on Marinette’s face.

“Sorry, I…”

He struggled to find the words. What had happened? Was it a memory? Or just something his mind invented to help him remember his mother’s voice?

“You’re as white as a ghost, Chat.” she frowned.

He was shivering again, too. Not from the cold this time, but rather it felt like the recollection was haunting him. He barely remembered anything from the time his mother disappeared, his mind’s way of protecting him, he guessed. Now, it seemed to be returning in fragments.

_“No!” His father barked. “You’re pushing too hard, Em! We’re just beginning to discover what these things do.”_

_“How would you know, Gabe? You haven’t so much as put yours on yet? Try it! It’s such a rush.”_

☂★☂

“Chat?”

Marinette’s voice grounded him again.

“I’m remembering,” he admitted.

Warm arms wrapped him in their protection, holding him until his anxieties eased. When she finally looked at him, her smile was weak and full of worry. Through that though, he saw it, saw his mother’s smile.

_“Be brave, Adrien.”_

_A strangled cry and a flurry of feathers. His father shouted her name, called out for Duusuu, tried to revive her. Then, Adrien was bundled away, back into the yurt, into his room. As Gorilla rushed him through the tent, something glittered and caught his eye. A brooch._

“A… Adrien?!” Marinette blurted out.

He must have muttered it unconsciously as another distant memory returned. So, now she knew who he was under the mask. Relief swept over him as the burden of keeping that secret from her was lifted. Of all his friends, he knew how strongly Marinette viewed honestly. She was also trustworthy and sure to keep his secret for him.

“Oh, uh… I guess the cat’s out the bag,” he grimaced.

☂★☂

She was confused. What cat? Which bag? Before she could ask him to clarify, a green light glowed and when it faded, instead of Chat Noir in her bed, it was Adrien Agreste.

“Adrien!!!” She squawked. “You..? Ha- How?”

Through her hysteria, a calm, reasoned voice was saying, ‘Of course it’s him, silly! How many dorky blonde boys with feather allergies, missing mothers and troubled home lives do you think there are in Paris?’

He smiled awkwardly at her and rubbed at his neck as he always did when he was nervous. Come to think of it, Chat had the very same mannerism.

“Surprise?” He said.

“Not as much as you’d first think,” she laughed uncomfortably.

He dived at her and hugged her so hard that she released an involuntary squeak. The embrace was full of heartfelt joy and relief. She understood why. Suddenly, his arms stiffened and he pulled away.

“I have to find Ladybug!”

“What?” This was embarrassing.

“I remembered something and I think it’ll lead us to Hawk Moth.”

His eyes were wide and his expression resolved. She knew nothing would stop him, even the driving rain still pounding on her windows. As she equivocated with herself on the best way to delay him until the weather had cleared, he began to look around. That’s when it occurred to her that she hadn’t seen his kwami when he detransformed.

“Plagg?” Adrien called out.

“Oh, no you don’t!” A tiny black cat popped its head out from the little hammock she made for TIkki to sleep in. “I’m finally getting some alone time with my Sugar Cube and you’re not going to ruin it to go tilt at windmills.”

“Sugar Cube?”

A blushing Tikki poked her head out the hammock too.

“Pleased to meet you, Adrien. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

Gawping, Adrien turned back to Marinette.

“Surprise?” She shrugged, feeling the heat spread across her cheeks.

His mouth opened and closed a few times as his brain processed the information. She was sure she looked the same just a few moments ago.

“You? You’re Ladybug?”

☂★☂

She nodded.

Of course, it was her! Now that he considered it, it couldn’t be anyone else. She displayed the same courage, tenacity and consideration, whether she was in spots and a mask, or pink skinny jeans. He pounced on her again squeezing her to his chest, crushing her in his exuberance. He sighed into her hair and whispered.

“My Lady.”

He couldn’t wipe the grin from his face. His heart fluttered and the hairs on his arm stood up as he thought about all the times protected her, all the times she’d rescued him, all the hours they’d spent together, guarding the city. All along, his Bugaboo was the shy girl who sat behind him in class!

It had been staring him in the face the whole time! Just like…

_A brooch that looked like the tail of a peacock on his mother’s blouse. A glimmer of silver, a butterfly-shaped brooch on the table as he was hurried to his room._

... The missing miraculouses were in his parents’ possession!

“As much as I want to stay on your bed and talk about everything, I think we need to suit up.”

Marinette’s brow knitted curiously. “Why is that, Chaton?”

“Because, I know where to find Hawk Moth.”


End file.
